Tuesday, March 28, 2017

On the portico at Abydos

Many of the figures of Phaorah Seti making offerings retain their original colors. The formulaic dress of the ancient Egyptians is echoed here by my daughter's very intelligent decision to "be an Egyptian girl for a week" and use a scarf I'd packed for situations like this. I'd brought it to use when visiting mosques. Here, in Luxor, its use is transformative. It cuts down harassment by trinket wielding touts by at least 75%. And even when they walk uncomfortably close (for Westerners), invading our personal space, they are so much less aggressive and so more easily waved away. Likely they're stymied by the sight of an obviously foreign woman dressed like a convert. And with me, with my Asian ancestry, as the older, related woman, well it's great. It makes manageable the getting around in this place with its expectations of haggling for every last stupid thing.
Shock and awe, women travelers out there! Shock and awe!